


Questions

by phoenixburncold



Category: Supernatural
Genre: Bouncing between Alternate Universe, Destiel - Freeform, F/M, Fem!Castiel, M/M, Multi, Questions, Romance
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2015-06-25
Updated: 2017-09-04
Packaged: 2018-04-06 04:43:00
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 8
Words: 11,329
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4208355
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/phoenixburncold/pseuds/phoenixburncold
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>The Winchester brothers are pulled into a parallel universe where Castiel never let the Leviathans take over his vessel (plus more surprises!). Castiel desperately tries to find them on his end.<br/>Dean realizes just how close he and Castiel have become through interesting circumstances.<br/>Set after Season 10...maybe between Season 10 and 11.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> This is gonna be fun...  
> Also, I spell Castiel's shortened name Cass, like the writers of Supernatural. If it bugs you, I'm truly sorry. Can we still be friends?  
> Universe Transitions within chapters are marked with this symbol: -------^^-------

Dean was eating a perfectly good bacon cheeseburger at the table in the Bunker. He was…very happy. He made sure to remember the name stamped on take-out bag next to his arm. Sam was searching the web for another case at his usual place at the table. It was a perfectly normal day.  


(Geez, how many stories start like that? Well don’t let me lose you here. Here comes the fun.)  


Dean took another massive bite of the burger and chewed slowly, letting it all soak in. Sam flicked through the webpages, a slightly bored look on his face. Suddenly Dean was jerked back and a flash of white-blue light burned his retinas. The air flew out of his lungs as he landed on his back. His head hit the ground hard and he groaned before rolling to his feet. Sam was a few feet away, blinking heavily like Dean to clear his eyes. “What the hell?!” Dean shouted as he spun on his heel, looking for whatever brought them there. All he saw was desert, the cracked earth hard and unforgiving.  


“Dean,” Sam said, eyes wide with surprise, arms spread out in his gesture of ‘What the hell?’ Dean slipped his hand into a pocket and pulled out his favorite knife he kept there. Sam armed himself as well, looking around.  


Suddenly the sound of feathered wings came from behind Dean. The noise familiar to both hunters, they turned, wondering if it was friend or foe.  


A female stood there, black hair just touching her shoulders, wearing a dark blue pantsuit, a tan trench coat, and low black wedges. Her sparkling blue eyes stared at Dean. Shock on her face, the female took a step toward Dean. “You’re dead,” she said, the shock also touching her voice.  


Dean blinked and did a double take at her. “What?!”  


The female’s eyes finally left Dean and flicked to Sam before returning to Dean. “You are both dead. How-?” Suddenly she stopped and threw her hand out toward them. White-gold light slammed into them, blowing their hair and clothes back. When the light was gone, the two men blinked heavily again. The female was still in front of them. She looked confused, turning her head slightly before taking another step toward Dean. “You don’t belong here,” she said, feeling the waves emanating from their souls. “You’re from a different place.”  


“Okay,” Dean said, utterly confused and frustrated. “What the hell? Who the hell are you?!”  


The female looked at him and turned her head again. “I’m Castiel.”  


Dean took a step back. “What?”  


“Don’t make me show you my wings again,” Castiel said with a slight smile on her face, remembering the first time she met the hunter.  


“Cass?” Sam asked, moving closer.  


The angel turned to him. “Sam,” she said with another smile. “It’s so good to see you both again.”  


“What was with the light show?” Sam asked.  


“I had to make sure you were human,” she answered. “That blast would have killed any shapeshifter or other monster taking your form.”  


“What the hell is going on?” Dean demanded. “I was just eating before something grabbed me and I landed here. Someone better start giving me answers, right now!”  


Castiel looked at Dean, several emotions flitting through her blue eyes before she turned on her heel and stretched out her hands to the air where Dean and Sam had fallen from. “There’s energy here,” she said, eyes closed. “Very strong, very old...” She turned back to Dean. “It’s a barely sealed tear in the fabric of space.” She moved closer to him, ignoring his surprised look. “Someone brought you from your universe to mine.” Dean stared into her blue eyes, only inches away from his green ones. Just looking at the blue pools, he realized he had done this many times before. _Only now Castiel is a woman…angel._ Dean shook his head, stepping back. Castiel’s hurt filled her features only a moment.  


“So…so what?” Sam asked, trying to understand. “We’re in a parallel universe?”  


Castiel nodded to Sam. “Yes.”  


“Why?” Sam asked.  


Castiel gave him a look. “I don’t know.” Suddenly she turned her head, listening to something the hunters couldn’t hear. “You need to come with me.” Touching both of their foreheads, she teleported.  


Dean groaned. He could feel his insides clamping up already. “Every time,” he muttered before looking around. They were on a desert city street. The place looked abandoned.  


“Cass!” A familiar voice called out from a nearby alleyway. “What the hell? Why’d you just –” Charlie stopped talking as she saw Dean and Sam standing on either side of the angel. “Ohmigod,” she said, eyes flicking from one to the other. “You guys are dead. How…?”  


“Someone tore into the fabric of space and brought them here,” Castiel explained.  


“What? Huh, okay.” Charlie said. She looked at the brothers before grabbing Dean and hugging him. Dean hugged her back gently. “It’s so good to see you guys again,” she said, squeezing Dean before flinging herself to Sam. The brothers shared a look of astonishment over her head.  


“Yea,” Sam said wrapping his arms around her. “It’s good to see you, too, Charlie.”  


“You look good,” Dean said. Charlie’s red hair was short, like the last time he had seen her. Her green eyes were bright with her smile. Her jeans and jacket were worn, smeared with dirt and gunpowder, but she looked well.  


Dean glanced at Castiel again. _A woman_ , he thought, shaking his head slightly. _Still an angel. But a different model now._ He had to admit, she certainly acted like Castiel. _And is dressed like him. And…_ Dean lost track of his thoughts as he realized Castiel was staring at him. It was the same stare he received from the male Castiel at nearly every encounter. He had never realized how much emotion was really in that look.  


“Thanks Dean,” Charlie replied, releasing Sam and turning to the older brother. “But in this universe, I’m into girls.”  


Dean grinned. “Yea? Well, it’s good some things haven’t changed,” he said.  


“Hey Cass,” Sam started. The angel turned to him. “Is…is Dad still alive here? Or Bobby?”  


Castiel turned her head slightly, chin down, eyes darkening. “No,” she replied. “I’m sorry.”  


The brothers momentarily slumped. Then Dean slapped his hands together. “Okay then,” he said, looking at the three others with a forced grin. “I guess the first thing we have to do is figure out just how the hell we got here.”  


“And who brought you,” Castiel added.  


“Any chance it’s for something…you know…good?” Sam asked the angel.  


“Probably not.”  


“Yea,” the taller Winchester sighed. “Didn’t think so.”  


“Well come on then,” Charlie said, tugging at Sam’s arm. “Let’s get to the safe house.”  


Dean let Castiel ahead of him as they followed Charlie into the alleyway she had come from. They walked for a minute before a light burned around them. The brothers looked around shocked as the dark alleyway suddenly became a large living room, complete with high ceilings and two TVs. A kitchen was to their right with a large fridge, oven, cabinets, and even an island countertop. Beyond the living room was another large room, this one with three open laptops, four chairs, and two more TVs. The door they had stepped through flashed its outline for a second before disappearing into the wall.  


“A couch?” Sam half asked, half stated, seeing the large crescent couch in front of the TVs a few feet to their left.  


“Yea,” Charlie said as if it was obvious. “Where else are we gonna sit when we game during our free time?” The brothers shared another awestruck look as they stood there.  


Castiel saw the look. “Do you not have a safe house?” she asked.  


“Well, yea,” Sam replied. “But it…it’s not like this.”  


“That sucks,” Charlie said going to the refrigerator and picking out drinks. “Heads up,” she called, tossing Sam and Dean a beer. They caught their beverage easily. She handed Castiel a cream soda and snapped the lid off her own bottle.  


“We do have a pretty awesome safe house,” Charlie sighed, turning back to the boys. “Completely hidden from the outside world; full of sigils to keep out all things nasty. We’re in a dead spot, nothing electrical that isn’t specifically tuned to the ever changing waves around this place can get through. No one can track us here and even if they did, they can’t get through the doors. They’re coded to our specific DNA and there has to be enough of it through the randomized scans before they’ll open. Plus, it doesn’t matter where we are in the good ole USofA, we can get here in under a minute with these.” Charlie brandished the bracelet she wore on her left hand. Castiel wore one as well, hers much slimmer than Charlie’s. “That’s all my work,” Charlie said with a grin. “Then Cass camouflaged the place so even if someone happened to pass by, it’d just look like a regular house.”  


“Wow,” Sam said, looking around the place in new appreciation. The ceilings were at least twenty feet high, the tech looked new, the place looked cleaned and well cared for.  


“Yea,” Charlie said with a grin. “And just wait til you see our gun stockroom Dean. You should like it, since you designed it yourse…” Charlie’s sentence trailed off and she got a distant look in her eyes before taking a large swig of the drink.  


“Alright,” Dean said with a sigh. “Let’s just get this part over with. How’d Sam and I die here?”  


Charlie licked her lips and kept dropping her gaze to the floor.  


“You died bloody,” Castiel said, drink untouched in her hand. She hadn’t stopped looking at the two men since receiving the bottle.  


“Yea,” Dean sighed, “Figured that much.”  


Castiel and Charlie traded looks before Charlie took a breath. “It’s been so long since we’ve talked,” she said. “I was hoping we could just chat a bit before getting to the dirty part.”  


“How long have we been…gone?” Sam asked, twisting the beer in his hand.  


“Three years, seven months, two weeks, and five days ago,” Castiel said. Dean’s mouth went into a hard line and Sam’s eyes widened.  


“We were clearing out a werewalker den,” Charlie started.  


“A what?” Dean asked, interrupting.  


Charlie looked at him, confused. “A werewolf-skinwalker den. You know werewolves, usually purebred, and skinwalkers working together in big packs. Werewolves do security while the skinwalkers wolf-out and go on their hunts and the other way around when the werewolves go on their hunts.”  


“Geez,” Dean breathed before gulping half the beer in a single swig. He had turned pale a few seconds before.  


“That doesn’t happen where we’re from,” Sam explained, equally pale.  


“Lucky you,” Charlie said, meaning it. She took another swig from her drink before continuing. “So we were clearing the den out…and well…we got surrounded ourselves. Apparently a dozen or so of the skinwalkers had been out for a late-night snack on their own. They surrounded us…and…well you and Sam…you guys…stayed back, gave the rest of us the chance to escape. By the time our back-up came… you two were…” Charlie looked down and swallowed hard.  


“Dead,” Dean finished. He let out a long breath before taking a swig of the beer.  


“You said ‘we’. Who else was working with you?” Sam asked.  


The sound of a doorbell rang through the place. Dean and Sam looked around bewildered. Charlie grinned. “Sounds like you’re about to see.”  


Light glowed around the door in the wall before it opened.  


Five figures stepped out of the light. When the door shut the brothers could see just who they were.  


In the front was Jo Harvelle, a shotgun held loosely in her hand. Meg was beside her, pulling an empty container from the bag slung around her shoulder. Garth was on the other side of Jo, wiping his forehead of sweat. Behind Garth was a man the brothers had never seen, holding a handgun. He turned to kiss Ellen Harvelle who stood next to him, her own handgun holstered. For a brief moment, none of them saw the brothers.  


Then Meg saw Sam and gave a short cry. Alerted, the others looked up and toward the two men. Almost simultaneously four weapons rose toward them, and Meg’s hand was outstretched.  


“Stop,” Castiel said loudly, voice making the walls shake slightly. The group turned to look at the angel.  


“They’re the real deal,” Charlie explained beside the angel. “Just from a different universe.”  


Confused looks met the angel and humans.  


After some explanation, what little they could provide, the brothers were welcomed by the group. The man they didn’t know grinned widely, slapping Sam on the shoulder. “Damn good to see you boys again,” he said cheerfully before passing them to get a beer.  


“Cass?” Sam asked out of the corner of his mouth to the angel standing just behind Sam and Dean. “Who is that guy?”  


The angel looked at him. “William Harvelle. Husband to Ellen and father of Joanna. You didn’t know him?”  


“No,” Sam answered, looking closely at the man now.  


“He was long dead by the time we met Jo and Ellen,” Dean said gruffly. “Damn, people keep getting resurrected. Freakin _Meg_ is even alive man,” he said to Sam.  


“Yea,” the taller brother said, eyes flicking the demon who was walking with Jo down the landing to the next room. “I saw that.” Castiel glanced at Dean one more time before following the demon and female human out of the room.  


“So no clue as to what brought you here huh?” Garth asked, sliding up beside Dean, who was startled.  


“No,” growled the older man. “Since when did you sneak up on people?”  


Garth took a drink of his soda. “I always do that,” he said. “It’s part of being Garthed.”  


Dean rolled his eyes before looking at the slender man. He looked the same as the Garth he knew, and wore Bobby’s hat over the mop of brown hair he had. “Hey man, I gotta ask,” Dean started. “You…you got any fangs?”  


Garth did a double-take. “Uh, no,” the slender man said, looking at Dean as if he was crazy.  


“Okay…well…good,” Dean said. “Just makin’ sure.”  


Garth gave him another long look before shrugging his shoulders and taking another drink from his soda can. He headed to the couch were Ellen was sitting, enjoying her cold beer.  


Dean blew out a long breath.  


“You gonna be okay?” Sam asked him.  


Dean looked at him. “Sam, we’re in parallel universe. People I have personally seen killed are standing here talking with me and people I’ve never even met before are happy to see me ‘again’. And Cass…Cass has boobs, man.” Sam gave him a sidelong look. “What?” the older brother asked. “I can’t _not_ notice something like that.”  


There was a long pause between brothers and Dean finished the beer. “So what do you think?” Sam asked after a few seconds. “Someone brought us here but got the location wrong?”  


“Yea,” Dean answered. “I guess. I mean, what’s the point of zapping us here if they aren’t going trying to use us right away? Something must have happened that sent us to the middle of that desert instead of wherever they were expecting us to be." He hated the knot in his stomach...he needed another drink.


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Universe Transitions within chapters are marked with this symbol: -------^^-------

The moment Dean and Sam were dragged backwards into the tear in space, Castiel’s head split in pain. Falling against the wall as he cried out in pain, Castiel gripped his forehead instinctively. When the tear in space was sealed, the pain dissipated into a dull throb just behind his eyes. Panting, Castiel stood up straight again. _Something is very wrong._ Such pain came to angels only during great disorder to the world. A quick word on angel radio told him no angel had resurrected a human.  


Cass paced the street he was on for a full minute, weighing his options. He didn’t want to ask the Winchesters to stop whatever they were doing to help him with his only evidence being the searing pain. He could almost hear Dean’s chastising as it was. The angel also didn’t want to involve his two best friends into something that was far beyond their capabilities. But after pacing another minute, he gave a long sigh and flew to the Bunker.  


His wings were still torn and overall damaged, so it took him longer than the usual half-second to get there. It also hurt. Panting slightly again, the angel looked around the room. He stood in the main area where he knew the men stayed often. The angel walked toward the table he had seen them frequently sit at while doing research. They were nowhere to be found. He took the cellphone from his pocket and called Dean. The voice said his number was disconnected. _That’s unusual_ , the angel thought before dialing Sam’s number. The hunters always made sure to tell him when either one of them switch numbers. The voice said the same thing for Sam.  


Now Castiel was getting worried. He knew the hunters well enough to know they would never get new numbers without at least one of them contacting him beforehand. The angel took a breath, quieting his mind. Now that he wasn’t distracted by his inner dialogue, he tasted something wrong. Walking to the other side of the table, Castiel followed the taste, moving out of the blind spot he had been in. There, he saw Sam’s laptop on the floor on its side next to the fallen chair, and the burger on the back of the other upturned chair.  


“Dean?!” shouted Castiel. “Sam?!” The angel reached out to the space the brothers had been pulled into. He, too, realized what had happened. Eyes wide with panic, Castiel looked around the room vainly. “DEAN!”  


\-------^^-------  


Dean woke with a start. Castiel was standing there, watching him like old times. _Except now he’s a she…with boobs._ “Cass,” he said, halfheartedly angry as he sat up from the reclining chair, the computer in front of him off. “Don’t do that.” He and Sam had been looking over the tech and the chair had been so damn comfy he had passed out in it. He looked around. The place was dim and was now deadly silent. When he had passed out the place had been well lit and there had been chatter and noises from the TVs in the other room. “Where’s everyone?” Dean asked, standing up.  


“Asleep,” Castiel answered. “Or in their rooms. Meg doesn’t sleep either, but she prefers the company of her magazines in these hours.”  


Dean sighed, rubbing the sleep from his face. When his hands dropped he found Castiel literally an inch away from him. “Geez, Cass,” he said instinctively, pulling back. “Personal space. Surely we talked about that here too?” Castiel turned her head, looking into his green eyes.  


^~^

Sam sighed as Charlie handed him his last beer for the day. He sat on her bed and twisted the lid off it. “It’s great you’re back,” Charlie said flashing a grin. “Even if it’s through crazy weird circumstances.”  


“Yea,” Sam said before taking a sip of the beer. “It’s great to see you again.”  


Charlie shifted in the chair she had pulled up to the bed. “So…I’m guessing I’m dead in your universe. From Dean and your reactions, I’m gonna guess it’s been a while.”  


Sam looked at the woman, fighting with himself, trying to push down the guilt that threatened to swallow him whole. “Yea,” he managed. “A year or so.” He opened his mouth to keep talking.  


“No,” Charlie said, a hand up to stop him before he could start. “I don’t want to know the details.” Charlie took a breath. “Just…just tell me,” she started, swallowing hard. “Was I brave in the end?” she asked.  


Sam looked her in the eyes. “Absolutely.”  


Charlie nodded before letting out another held breath. “Good,” she said, flashing a smile.  


They sipped from their drinks a moment in silence. Then Sam broke it. “Charlie,” he started.  


“Yea?”  


“Who was your back-up…when Dean and I died?”  


Charlie shifted again in the chair, eyes down a moment. She took another drink before looking up at him. “Cass and Meg.”

^~^ 

“Personal space?” Castiel breathed with a slight smile, her eyes glittering. “You haven’t said something like that in years.”  


Dean pulled back. “Yea, well, since I’ve been dead for three and a half years, I’m sure I haven’t.” He turned away to get another beer. Castiel intercepted him, appearing directly in front of him. Dean just managed to stop before he ran into her. About to snap at her, the hunter looked at her face. Pain, anguish, and sorrow filled her eyes, her face stone.  


“That’s not what I meant,” Castiel said, voice breaking.

^~^ 

“What happened that night?” Sam asked.  


“Why do you want to know so bad Sam? Can’t we just hang out? I haven’t seen you in years.” Sam gave her look and she sighed. “Of course not,” she muttered before looking at him.  


“Everything was crazy,” she began. “Skinwalkers turned wolves and werewolves all over the place. All of us just fighting to stay alive. Castiel and Meg were taking care of another den nearby. We thought we could handle that den. We would have been fine if they had all been where they were supposed to be,” she said bitterly before taking a drink. “Dean said he could hold them off while we got out of the kill zone. You fought at the front of the line while Dean covered our backs. When we got out, you went back for him. We tried to follow you, but there were too many, and we were all wounded. Jo and Garth had it the worst and we were barely able to stabilize them. Cass and Meg showed up and blasted all those son-of-bitches in one amazing black-white flare. But you and Dean…you guys…you were on the ground, blood-soaked. We couldn’t tell how much blood was from you and what was from the monsters. Castiel tried to save you guys, she tried so hard, but she had been wounded at the other den and after the blast that killed the rest of that den…she was drained. Dean…Dean died in her arms. You died with me and Ellen on either side of you, trying to patch you up.”  


Sam looked at her, sadness in his eyes. “I’m sorry,” he said.  


Charlie wiped her eyes quickly. “It’s fine,” she said. “It’s our messed up world. We grieved, we moved on as best as we could. I don’t think Cass is ever going to be the same.”  


“Why do you say that?” Sam asked.  


Charlie looked up at him bewildered. “Well, I mean, she rebelled against Heaven for him. When he died, he took her whole reason to be stuck on Earth. Well, maybe not the _whole_ reason, she still has us and the mission to protect Earth, but she fought against Heaven for HIM. She can’t go back to Heaven now…because she fell in love with Dean.”

^~^ 

Castiel looked into Dean’s eyes. “I missed you so much,” she said before kissing him.  


Dean’s eyes went wide and he pulled away quickly. “Whoa, whoa,” he said, hands up in a defensive posture. “What the hell Cass?”  


Castiel’s hurt was obvious to the hunter. “Dean,” her voice broke. “Please tell me you love me.”  


“You’re family,” Dean said instinctively. “You’re like my little brother–er sister–er…I mean…” Flustered Dean snapped, “You can’t just go kissing people Cass.”  


Castiel’s stone face broke as the pain filled her features. She looked down and then back up to Dean, face fierce. “In your universe,” she started, anger in her voice, “I raised you from Perdition. I know that, I can see my handprint on your shoulder, covered but there. Tell me, did I rebel against Heaven and bring you to Sam in an attempt to stop him before he killed Lilith? Did I try to find God after you had failed and Lucifer walked the Earth? Did I stay with you and Sam when you were hunted by Zachariah? Did I protect you when demons and angels alike tried to kill you? Did I sacrifice myself so you could live, against the archangel guarding the prophet you found and later Lucifer? Did I continue to come when you called, even when I had my own war I was fighting against Raphael who wanted to restart the apocalypse we had stopped together? Did I reject all those souls I took in from Purgatory after I won the war against Raphael, because you needed me to?”  


Dean swallowed. “Well…yea...”  


Castiel moved closer to him. “And through all that, you still considered me only a sibling, only a mere child? Through all that, you did not love me?”  


Dean swallowed again, intensely uncomfortable. “I…you...you’re a dude where I’m from,” he said.  


“So what?” Castiel demanded. “Are you saying you couldn’t love me because I wasn’t the right ‘model’ as you called it? Because I am male in your Universe and you are male, we can’t have a deeper relationship beyond friendship?”  


Dean blinked several times, mouth open as he tried to speak but realized he couldn’t. He had never seen any angel as mad as she was now. Even Zachariah’s anger hadn’t touched this level. Dean realized he was terrified, one of the few times he had ever felt this way. The lights snapped completely off and lightning struck for a few seconds. The shadows of her wings were outstretched in an offensive manner against bright lightning of the room before the lights flickered back on. He closed his mouth after a few seconds and swallowed. “I…I’m not into dudes,” Dean said, reaching for any shred of defense he could.  


Castiel moved in even closer, forcing Dean to bend backward slightly. “I don’t believe you,” she said softer, searching his eyes. “I think you felt that love and denied both yourself and your Castiel because you were afraid of some old fashioned custom the religious leaders made up to keep their people under control over three thousand years ago.” Dean could not answer to that, and merely stared into Castiel’s fierce blue eyes. “You are a child,” Castiel snapped before vanishing with the sound of feathered wings.  


Dean let out his breath, realizing he had been holding it. Looking around for any witnesses, he breathed out quietly before rubbing his eyes again.


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Universe Transitions within chapters are marked with this symbol: -------^^-------

Castiel paced the playground, stiff with worry.  


“Pacing won’t make the decision making go any faster.”  


Castiel looked at the little girl who was staring at him, her little head tilted. “I know Amy,” Castiel said to the other angel. “But it’s a human habit that has rubbed off on me. Doing _something_ is better than doing nothing.”  


The angel shrugged with her slender shoulders. “Very well,” she said, before hopping back to the swings.  


Castiel sighed deeply, watching the sandbox for any movement. The symbol in the sandbox stayed unlit, and Castiel began pacing again. It was another minute before the soft hum emanated from the sand. Castiel rushed over to it as the symbol glowed and a familiar angel stepped out of the sandbox. “Inias,” breathed Castiel happily.  


“Castiel,” Inias replied slightly stiff.  


“It’s good to see you old friend,” Castiel said, smiling.  


Inias looked uncomfortable a moment. “Yes,” he replied. “They…chose me specifically because of our friendship.”  


Castiel looked confused at the other angel. “What does that mean?”  


Inias sighed and took another step forward. “It means, old friend,” the angel said, “That the decision was made…and it was decided we cannot help you.”  


Castiel flashed surprise and then anger. “What do you mean? Sam and Dean, they’re missing. Not just missing but pulled through some tear in the fabric of space itself! How can that not be a problem for the angels?”  


Inias swallowed, looking down. “I’m sorry,” he offered. “But Heaven’s resources are strained right now. We are still rebuilding Heaven; and there are many who are still uncertain about you and the Winchesters.”  


“Inias, listen to me,” Castiel said urgently, taking a step forward. “Something powerful enough to pull two humans out of this universe and _hopefully_ into another is a major threat. To Earth and Heaven. Heaven has to understand that!”  


“Castiel –”  


“Inias, if they can catch Dean and Sam by surprise, what’s to stop them from going after angels? We don’t know the limits of their power. We don’t even know if it’s a singular entity. Does Heaven realize what could be at stake here?”  


Inias tugged at his tie slightly. “I’m sorry Castiel. But Heaven has decided.”  


“Heaven’s wrong,” Castiel snapped. “Let me go, talk with them personally. I can –.”  


“Until Metatron is found and brought back to his cell, you know I can’t do that.”  


Castiel vented a breath, glaring at Inias. “It was a mistake,” Castiel said. “But I am alive because of it.”  


Inias looked very uncomfortable again. “I know Castiel,” he said, leaning closer to him and dropping his voice. “If it were up to me, I’d do it in a heartbeat, you know I would.” Inias pulled away and spoke normally again. “But Heaven’s just started to get back on the right track. Hannah appreciates everything that’s happened because of your help, and she, as well as many other angels, are pleased you are back to your full strength. But there has to be some _order_ , Castiel. We can’t do special favors right now.”  


Castiel vented another breath, looking away. “I understand,” he said, knowing the position he would be putting those who were still on his side if he disobeyed. He didn’t like it but he understood it. Castiel sighed before meeting his fellow angel’s eyes. “Will someone at least be tasked into this? See if there are any more sealed tears? I can keep an eye on the known one. I just need to know Heaven won’t let this slide by. This…whoever did this…they could destroy everything, including Heaven. Or worse, break out those in Hell.”  


Inias nodded. “I will make sure someone looks into it,” he replied.  


“Thank you Inias,” Castiel said, really meaning it. He put a hand on Inias’ shoulder. Inias nodded and mirrored the action for Castiel.  


“Until next time Brother,” Inias said before stepping back into the sandbox. “I hope then I can give better news to you.” Castiel nodded as the blue-white light enveloped Inias.  


Castiel turned and sighed. He took to the air, simply flying, unseen by all below him.  


\-------^^-------  


Sam woke with a start. Looking around the unfamiliar room, he bolted to his feet. Then the last day’s memories filtered through his consciousness. He lowered the gun and wiped the sweat from his face. The gun was identical to his favorite gun, but there was just something about it that seemed…off. _Couldn’t be because it’s from a different UNIVERSE or anything_ , Sam thought sarcastically as he sat down on the bed heavily, looking at it. After a few minutes, Sam glanced at the clock near the bed. It was 6am. With a sigh, Sam stood up, holstered the weapon in its usual place, and opened the door to his room.  


Jo was leaving her room two doors down. She looked up at him. “Oh!” she said quickly before releasing her grip on the knife she kept at the small of her back. “It’s so weird seeing you again,” she said in explanation.  


“Yea,” Sam said, eyes still wide from similar surprise at seeing her. “I completely understand.”  


Jo shifted slightly, seeing him. “So…guessing I’m dead where you’re from.”  


Sam swallowed and nodded. “Yea,” he said.  


“And Mom and Dad?”  


Sam vented a sigh. “All dead.”  


Jo nodded, absorbing the information. “Wow,” she said softly. Then she shrugged. “Well…at least we’re together.”  


“Yea,” Sam breathed.  


Jo shook her head and gave a half-smile. “Yea, I think next time I’ll wait until after I’ve had my coffee before I ask about my mortality.”  


She looked up at Sam and they shared a quick, forced grin before Sam gestured with his hand. “After you.” Jo flashed a real grin before she passed him, both heading to the kitchen.  


Garth, Ellen, and Meg were already there. Garth looked half-awake, both hands wrapped around his coffee cup, wearing blue shorts and a sleeveless white shirt. Ellen wore a soft gray t-shirt and sweatpants as she poured herself a cup from the massive pot, her back to them. Meg had jeans and a purple sleeveless shirt on as she flicked through a magazine at the island, sitting on one of the three stools around it.  


“Coffee Joanna Beth?” Ellen asked without turning around.  


“Yes ma’am,” Jo answered before pulling out the sugar from a nearby counter.  


“And you, Sam?” Ellen asked as she poured coffee into Jo’s cup.  


Sam looked startled but replied, “Yes please.”  


Ellen nodded, pulling out another coffee cup from the cabinet directly above her. Sam walked to her, leaning against the counter near her while Jo spooned sugar into her cup. “It’s good to have you back,” Ellen said, handing him his cup.  


“Thanks…I think.” The two shared a smile.  


“Anyone seen Dean this morning?” Ellen asked.  


“Nope,” Meg replied.  


Garth mumbled something about lions. Sam glanced at Ellen, eyebrows up.  


Ellen waved her hand dismissively before taking her cup. “He’s never fully awake until he’s finished his cup. Speaks utter nonsense most mornings.”  


Sam nodded. “Okay then,” he said before sipping at the coffee.  


“Castiel’s missing too,” Meg said almost bored, flicking the page of her magazine.  


“Not like that’s unusual,” Charlie said, entering the room with fluffy Legend of Zelda pajama bottoms and a Transformers t-shirt on. Ellen turned to fill the Pac Man coffee cup she had already set out. “Thanks Ellen,” Charlie said, taking the cup from Ellen’s outstretched hand. She dumped two heaping spoonful’s of sugar into the cup and stirred. Then she pinched herself as she looked at Sam before sipping at her coffee.  


“What’d you do that for?” Sam asked.  


“Just making sure I’m not dreaming,” she replied cheerfully before smiling over the lip of her cup.  


“Um…okay,” Sam said, taking another drink of the coffee. It was one of the best cups of coffee he had ever had. When he told Ellen this, the woman laughed kindly.  


“Thanks Sam,” she said, eyes bright. “You always did love my coffee.”  


Sam forced a smile, trying to hide the sadness in his eyes. Ellen saw it anyway but decided not to mention it. “So,” Sam started looking around the room. “You guys hunting anything major?”  


“Nope,” Meg said, eyes still on her magazine.  


“Mostly just clearing out dens these days,” Jo said.  


“Really?” Sam asked. “Nothing…Earth shattering going on right now?”  


“You mean besides two hunters getting sucked into a different Universe?” Meg asked dryly. “Nope, nothing’s going on.” Sam made an exasperated face at the demon. “I saw that,” Meg said without looking up. Sam sighed.  


“Hey, Mom where’s Dad?” Jo asked.  


“He went out shopping,” Ellen replied. “Fridge’s stocked, but with the boys back, it won’t be for long.” She flashed Sam a smile in apology; the male merely shrugged his shoulders, face saying he wasn’t offended.  


The doorbell sounded an instant before the feathered wing sound filled the room. Castiel stood in the living room, trench coat and lower pants dusty from the desert. Seeing the humans in the kitchen, the angel passed her gaze over them before settling on Sam. “Sam,” she said, walking forward. “I searched the area I found you and Dean. Nothing for a hundred mile radius is there that could have brought you here.”  


Ellen whistled. “Sounds like your ‘friend’ either had their calculations way off or –.”  


“We were brought here just to get us out of the way,” Sam finished. Ellen nodded.  


“What bothers me,” Castiel said, “Is why would they bring you _here_ ?”  


“What do you mean Cass?” Jo asked before Sam could.  


Castiel looked at her before finding Sam’s eyes. “There are multiple universes running parallel to each other,” the angel stated. “But there are spaces between these universes. These spaces are full of void energy. Nothing lives there, nothing dies there. It is the opposite, the other side…of well everything. To get from one universe to another, you’d have to go through this space very quickly. Stay there any longer than a few milliseconds you are completely destroyed. Your very energy disappears; it is as if you never existed, _ever_ . So if someone was just trying to get rid of you two, why wouldn’t they just leave you in that space?”  


“Maybe they needed Sam and Dean’s past.” Everyone turned to look at Garth. Fully awake, Garth looked at them, putting his empty coffee cup on the island counter. “Think about it,” he said eagerly. “You said if you got left in that void energy, you wouldn’t exist. So that would mean the world would be drastically different. I mean, geez, you guys have pretty much single-handedly save the world like…three or four times, at least in this universe.”  


“That does make sense,” Castiel mused, nodding.  


“So what,” Dean started, coming from the shadows he had been leaning in for the past minute or two. “They wanted the world to be the same but didn’t want us getting in their way?”  


“Basically,” Garth said, nodding vigorously.  


“Why not just kill us though?” Dean asked. “Why go through all the trouble of sending us to another freakin universe?”  


Stumped, the group was silent.  


“Whatever the reasons,” Castiel said. “We need to find a way to get you back to your universe.”  


“What if we get zapped again?” Dean asked. “What if we go back and get pulled into _another_ universe? Maybe one with Lucifer as King of the Rock and no help? Or one where the Croatian virus has taken over the Earth?”  


“What do you suggest we do then?” Castiel snapped. “Just sit here?”  


“No,” Sam said. “But we _should_ find whoever did this. It takes care of everything. We find who did this and have them take us back to our universe.”  


“And hope they actually do it? Cuz the bad guys always do that,” Dean said sarcastically.  


“Are you gonna just knock down every idea?” Sam demanded.  


“Settle boys,” Ellen said, standing between them.  


“We can’t sit here and do nothing, and we apparently can’t do anything without _dire_ consequences,” Sam said. “So what the hell are we supposed to do?”  


“Hunt.”  


Everyone turned to Jo. “What?” Ellen asked for them all.  


Jo sighed and rolled her eyes. “If you can’t decide on what to do about this situation, let’s just do what we’ve always done. Hunt. Things have always had this odd way of working out if you just keep hunting. A vamp will taunt us, knowing something. Or some deity will pop out the woodwork. Or some freaky new monster will show up. Either way, we’ll know.”  


Silence met her statements. “It is logical,” Castiel said with a nod.  


Dean vented a breath but said nothing.


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Universe Transitions within chapters is marked by this symbol: -------^^-------

Castiel hated himself sometimes. He hated what he had become, wished he could undo so much that he had done. He wondered what would have happened had he just spat out the souls from Purgatory as soon as he killed Raphael, wondered if he had just told the Winchesters about the war in the first place would he have even needed those souls. He regretted so many things in his life, most of it in the last ten years. He thought it interesting that he was so old, and only now started to regret things he had done.  


“Goodness me, is it my birthday already?”  


Castiel sighed, wondering if he would regret _this _decision as well as he turned. Crowley stood a few feet away, one hand in his pocket, the other grasping a gun. Castiel recognized the gun as the one Crowley had shot him point blank with a few years ago. He also remembered Crowley saving his life by killing the angel who would have killed him and Hannah and giving Castiel her grace to last the next few months before his grace was restored to him. Then there was the time Castiel was possessed by a spell and nearly killed Crowley because of it. Their relationship was full of mixed messages to say the least, but the angel had no other choice. “Hello Crowley.”__  


Crowley aimed the gun at Castiel’s chest. “Give me one good reason why I shouldn’t pull the trigger and send you…wherever it is you angels go after death.”  


“Dean and Sam are missing.”  


Crowley gave him look. “So?”  


Castiel sighed. “They were pulled through a tear in the fabric of space.”  


Crowley dropped the gun. “ _What _?”__  


Castiel told the demon everything he knew, including Heaven’s decision. “I need your help,” the angel said to the King of Hell.  


Crowley tapped the gun against his thigh lightly, thinking. After a few breaths he looked at Castiel. “What do I get out of it?”  


“What do you want?” Castiel asked.  


Crowley grinned. “Come now, we’ve known each other for a while. Surely you know what I like by now.”  


“Crowley,” Castiel growled.  


“Oh, say my name again. I just get _tingly_ when you say it like that.”  


Castiel vented a breath in frustration, looking away.  


“I’d ask for that bitch,” Crowley spat, talking, no doubt, about his mother. “But seeing as you haven’t killed her by now you don’t know where she is. And you’re locked out of Heaven which means you can’t get that all-seeing access, so I guess that’s not in the cards.” Castiel glared at him, hating he knew so much. Crowley ignored the angel, thinking. “Something powerful pulled the dynamic duo through space holes they made. I want it.”  


Castiel looked at Crowley. “How do you expect me to do that?”  


Crowley gave the angel a look. “I don’t care. Just bring me them.”  


“What do you want them for?” Castiel asked.  


Crowley rolled his eyes. “Please,” the King of Hell said. “Something that powerful can always do something for someone. I. Want. It. Once you bring the boys back, you three can have a merry chase finding their kidnapper. When you find them, you can call me, and I’ll take them off your hands. I’m sure I can think of something I can use them for.”  


The angel fought within himself. He hated the fact he needed this demon’s help, but he had no other options. All his friends were either wrapped in the politics of Heaven, dead, or in another universe. While Castiel didn’t necessarily trust the demon, he knew Crowley worked for the best interest of the planet, and sometimes the Winchesters’ when the demon hadn’t been personally spurned.  


“So,” Crowley said, apparently bored of the silence. “We figure out how to get the boys back, you give me whoever did this, we part ways. Sound like a deal?”  


Castiel gave the demon a sideways look. “No tricks,” the angel said. “No ending the world.”  


Crowley laughed. “Oh Castiel, you are a pip you. Why would I want to end the world? In case you didn’t notice, I _like _it here. I’ve got plenty of loyal subjects, get a steady influx of souls, get to make the occasional exciting deal; I’m all set.”__  


The angel knew Crowley was planning something, but he didn’t have a choice. Castiel made a mental note to ask Inias or Hannah to keep an eye on the demon, but wondered if that would do anything with Crowley’s nature. “Fine,” Castiel said.  


“Brilliant,” Crowley said before whipping out the contract. It was two feet long.  


“A little short, isn’t it?” Castiel asked, trying out sarcasm again.  


Crowley raised his eyebrow before looking at it. “It is a bit shorter than most of the deals I make. I could make a bit longer if you’d like. Perhaps something extra if you don’t hold on your part of the deal, since you’ve a history for that.” The scroll lengthened another half foot. “There now,” the King of Hell said. “Shall we start reading or just sign?”


	5. Chapter 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Universe Transitions within chapters is marked by this symbol: -------^^-------

Dean sighed as he snapped a magazine into the pistol. “Freakin’ fantastic,” he muttered.

Sam looked over at him. “Dude, what is your problem today? Yesterday you were at least…well you. Now you’re all…angsty. What happened? And don’t say you’re in a parallel universe, because honestly, this one seems to be a lot better off than our universe.” Dean sighed, glancing at Castiel. The angel was putting a string of long silver blades into the deep pockets of her trench coat, calm determination on her face. Sam noticed the glance. “Something happen between you and Cass last night?”

Dean immediately flushed but hid it by turning away from Sam, pulling out another magazine from the bag to Dean’s left. “It’s just weird, Sam.”

“Dude, this whole universe is weird. Charlie, Meg, Jo, Ellen, hell even Jo’s dad – they’re all alive. And…together. Can you imagine what it would be like if we all worked together like this all the time? Instead of it all just being on us?”

Dean vented a breath. “Yea,” he said. “But we didn’t get our clubhouse until a few years ago. And by then…” The two shared a look. Most of their fellow hunters and friends were long dead. 

“Yea,” Sam said to fill the silence.

“Are you ready?” Charlie asked, handling her pistol with ease as she looked at the brothers.

“Yea,” Dean said, snapping the first bullet into the chamber of his own pistol. “Let’s do this.”

\-------^^------- 

After an hour of reading (the angel was much less of a businessman than Crowley so he agreed to nearly everything), Castiel and Crowley signed the contract. “Alright then,” Crowley said, whipping the contract closed with a flick of his hand. “I’ll look around. There are still a few favors owed to me.” Before Castiel could speak, the demon vanished. The angel heaved a sigh. He had already scoured the Bunker before going to Crowley. There was no other lead he could follow. He went back to the Bunker, standing in front of the barely closed tear by the table. Stretching his hand out toward it, Castiel almost thought he could sense Dean through it. Then he sighed, turning away from it.

\-------^^------- 

Finally Dean felt right. Blasting into a pack of skinwalkers, most in wolf form, his brother by his side, Dean could forget everything weird about this place. Here, it was kill or be killed. Teeth bared, claws stretched out, wild eyes, this is what Dean knew and could understand. He fired into the large pack, keeping count how many times he pulled the trigger; his pocket weighed by the full magazines of silver bullets he brought along.

White light seared to his left. He glanced there, seeing Castiel’s eyes glow angel blue, her hair whipping around from her swift turn, hand on the forehead of a skinwalker his face still mostly wolfish. In an instant the rock was back, settling in his stomach. Werewolves filtered through the skinwalkers, joining the attack. A snarl to his right made him shift, shooting before he fully saw the skinwalker leaping toward him. The body dropped and Dean turned again, smacking the werewolf in the head with the butt of his pistol, caving in the skull. Ahead of him, Meg dropped two leaping wolves with her shotgun. Charlie sped past him on the other side, duel wielding pistols and hitting the monsters with impressive accuracy. Dean roared as he moved forward, blasting the human skinwalker before she got to Charlie with the machete. Charlie whipped around a second later and flashed Dean a grin before covering Meg. Dean shot another wolf before letting the empty clip fall and reloading.

A bullet slammed into his shoulder. Dean roared in pain, whipping to the side and putting a bullet in the female skinwalker’s head. Claws racked into his back, throwing him to the ground as the full grown werewolf slammed into him. Rolling to the side, Dean struggled to pull the snarling werewolf off him. Jaws snapped inches from his face. Dean grabbed the front right leg of the monster, barring it from moving closer, keeping his arm at an angle so it couldn’t bite him. He struggled to reach for his fallen pistol with his free hand.

Suddenly light burned his retinas. Blinded, Dean felt the werewolf slump against him before the weight was lifted from him. Blinking heavily, Dean saw Castiel standing over him, bloodstained, panic on her face.

“Dean,” she said, dropping to her knees and checking him.

“I’m okay,” he insisted, sitting up.

“Did she bite you?”

“No.”

Castiel breathed out in relief before throwing one of the silver blades in her pocket into the eye of the skinwalker leaping toward them. His human body dropped next to the werewolf that had almost tore Dean’s face off. Dean blinked several times, trying to clear his vision.

Twilight was falling quickly around them. Castiel checked the area again before turning to Dean. Blood streamed from his chest, shoulder, and back. Her two fingers pressed into Dean’s forehead and she healed him. Dean blinked again, vision restored, body mended. Cass helped him to his feet even though he could have managed it himself.

Still panting slightly, Dean looked around. Bodies blanketed the forest floor. Meg and Charlie stood a few feet to Dean’s left. Jo and Garth supported Ellen, her right foot off the ground. Will was helping Sam retrieve weapons several feet to Dean’s right. Everyone was smeared with blood. Castiel's blue eyes peered into Dean's. Dean realized he was holding his breath. Then Castiel turned, heading toward Ellen. The angel shifted around the bodies elegantly before reaching Ellen and healing her broken ankle. She went to Charlie next, healing her shoulder. Dean sighed.


	6. Chapter 6

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Universe Transitions within chapters is marked by this symbol: -------^^-------

It had been four hours. Castiel still hadn’t heard anything from Crowley. The angel paced the entirety of the Bunker. He had gone through every piece of paper, every book, every artifact in the Men of Letter’s care. He had found nothing new. The angel sat down heavily onto a chair. He had cleaned the room, righting the chairs that had been knocked over, settled the laptop back on the table and given the soiled burger to the small homeless dog that had come to pace with Castiel in the alleyway. Castiel put his head in his hands and prayed, something he did rarely these days. “Father…if you can hear me…please. Help me find my friends. I have so few left now.” The angel took a shaky breath, eyes closed, used to the silence. 

\-------^^-------

After gathering the weapons from the battleground, because “Hey you can never have too many weapons,” the group went back to the Bunker. Dean went straight to the fridge, getting two beers out and popping off their caps. He downed one in less than a minute. Castiel stood in the living room, watching him. Everyone else headed to the showers, peeling off their blood-soaked outer layers as they did.

Dean turned, looking at Castiel. Blood still streaked her trench coat and shirt. “Why don’t you clean yourself off?” Dean asked, curious.

Castiel looked down at herself before looking back up at him. “It’d be a waste of power,” she said frankly.

“Since when does that matter?”

Castiel turned her head in a familiar way, but she frowned, her eyes sad. “Since I was locked out of Heaven.”

Dean coughed up the swig of beer. “What?!”

Castiel looked sadly at him. “I was banned from Heaven in the year 2011.”

Dean thought about it a moment. “Before or after you took the souls from Purgatory?”

“After,” Castiel replied.

“After you went on the rampage in Heaven?”

Castiel’s eyes went wide. “I never did that.”

Dean blinked several times, beer forgotten in his hand. “What?”

“I never killed in Heaven.”

Dean made a confused gestured before rubbing his forehead. “Okay. So, you took the souls from Purgatory to kill Raphael. Right?” Castiel nodded. “And then what?”

“Maybe it would be easier if I just showed you,” Castiel said.

Dean took a step back, face wary. “I’m not sure I want you in my head.”

“Don’t worry,” she said, walking forward. She gazed into his eyes a long moment.

Dean swallowed hard but nodded. “Okay.”

Her cool fingers pressed against his forehead again, and Dean suddenly found himself back in that basement those many years ago. Looking through Castiel’s eyes, he saw Raphael burst apart, blood smearing the wall over the sigil. Then he saw himself standing next to Bobby, fear and concern in his eyes. “So, I saved you...again,” Castiel said, a faint smile on her face.

“You sure did Cass,” Dean replied, moving closer to her. “Thank you.”

“You doubted me,” Cass said, facing him. “Fought against me. But I was right all along.”

“Okay Cass, you were. We’re sorry. Now let’s just defuse you okay?”

“What do you mean?”

“You’re full of nuke,” Dean said, concern filling his features. “It’s not safe. So before the eclipse ends let’s get them souls back to where they belong.”

“No they belong with me,” Cass replied calmly.

“No, Cass, it’s…it’s scrambling your brain.”

"No, I'm not finished yet. Raphael had many followers, and I must… punish them all severely.”

“Listen to me,” Dean said, moving closer to the angel. “Listen, I know there's a lot of bad water under the bridge, but we were family once. I'd have died for you. I almost did a few times. So if that means anything to you…” Tears threatened to fall from his eyes.

“Please. I've lost Lisa, I've lost Ben, and now I've lost Sam. Don't make me lose you too. You don't need this kind of juice anymore, Cass. Get rid of it before it kills us all.”

Castiel was silent, looking at him.

Dean took a shaky breath. “Okay…okay, fine. You…you’re gonna make me say it aren’t you?”

Castiel was confused. “Say what?”

Dean blew out a breath, tears still in his eyes. He bit his lower lip a moment and swallowed. “Cass,” he started, taking another step forward, concern and fear still evident.

“Castiel,” he said, taking her hand. “I…I love you.”

Castiel looked at him. Truth shone in his eyes amongst the tears.

“I love you, Cass. So, please. For me. For us. All of us. Put the souls back. You don’t need it. You’ve won. Let the souls go back.”

Castiel blinked slowly before gripping Dean’s hand. Dean looked down at their clasped hands before looking back up at her eyes. She knew he was telling the truth. “Okay,” Castiel said.

Sam stumbled behind her. She turned, releasing Dean’s hand. “Sam,” Castiel said, looking at the obviously ill hunter.

“Cass,” Sam managed, sweat soaking him. He was shaky, swallowing often.

“I’m so sorry,” she said before tapping the tall hunter’s forehead, mending the wall in his mind. Sam dropped, caught by Castiel, who eased him to the ground as Dean rushed to their side. “He’ll be fine,” the angel told him. “He’ll wake up in a few minutes.”

“Okay,” he said, putting a hand on Sam’s chest a moment before looking up at Castiel. “What about you?” Dean asked.

Castiel looked at the wall with the smeared sigil. “I didn’t use all the blood for my ritual,” she said. In a flash she grabbed the remaining blood and returned to the room. Together Cass and Dean made another sigil on the wall. Bobby chanted the words and the door reopened.

Dean could feel the pain from Castiel even though she tried to hide it from him in the memory. He felt the agony as the souls streamed from her back into Purgatory. Finally all the souls were returned. She dropped to the ground, unconscious for a moment. Waking, Castiel saw Dean’s concerned face over hers. He let out a relieved breath. Helping her stand, Dean then wrapped his arms around her in a warm hug. She pulled away slightly. “Do you still love me?” she asked.

Dean responded by kissing her, hand gently on her cheek.

Dean was pulled out of the memory. He blinked rapidly, trying to absorb everything he had just seen.

“I’m sorry,” Cass said, turning away from him. “I didn’t mean to make you uncomfortable again. I tried to pull you out before you saw that.”

Dean swallowed before taking a swig from the beer, processing it all. “Okay,” he said after a few moments. “So you returned the souls to Purgatory that night. Did the Leviathan – ?”

“Leviathan?” Castiel interrupted.

“Yea. You know, nasty black ooze-bleeding bastards?”

“I know what they are. But they were returned to Purgatory like all the other souls.”

Dean looked at her. “So…no Leviathan walking the Earth? No Dick Roman? No Leviathan tablet? No Kevin Tran the Prophet?”

Castiel looked at him, eyes wide. “No, none of that happened. You found the tablet for Leviathan? The Word of God?”

“Yea,” Dean said with a half-smile. “We…acquired the Leviathan tablet. Demon and angel, tablets too.”

Castiel paled. “There’s an angel tablet?”

“Yep,” Sam said, walking into the room. He wore fresh clothes and rubbed his wet hair with the towel over his shoulders.

Castiel blinked rapidly. “I’m not sure you should be telling me this,” she said, fear in her voice.

“I’m still confused,” Dean said. “Why are you locked out of Heaven?”

Castiel swallowed. “To fall in love is forbidden,” she replied. “It is a strong emotion. Angels aren’t supposed to have strong emotions. We aren’t supposed to have emotions at all. There are a few of us who do, and we walk the line between Heaven and Earth. When you told me you loved me that night…I realized I loved you too. Heaven…Heaven…” Castiel took a breath and she shifted, clearing her throat. “I wasn’t killed. I was allowed to keep my grace. I still continue to have a small connection to Heaven. But I can never return to Heaven.”

“So who runs Heaven?” Sam asked, curious. “Maybe we can talk to them.”

Castiel smiled at him gently. “I doubt anything you say will affect the decision. You already tried once. I don’t think Gabriel will change his mind.”

“Gabriel’s in charge?” Dean asked. The brothers shared a look. “That son of a bitch actually stepped up to lead?”

Castiel nodded. “It’s because of you two Gabriel did. Your interference allowed me to live.”

“Wow,” Sam breathed.

“You sound impressed,” Cass said.

“Well, yea. It took a lot for us to get through to our Gabriel. So…I can’t imagine what we had to do here to get Gabriel to come through.”

“Who runs Heaven in your universe?”

“Well once Metatron got his ass kicked, Hannah stepped up. She’s pretty good, for an angel that is.”

Castiel looked at Sam. “Metatron? The angel scribe? He came out of hiding?”

“Yea,” Dean said, “in time to make all the angels fall from Heaven starting a freakin civil war on Earth.”

“Please stop,” Castiel begged, eyes filled with sadness. “Don’t tell me more. Your universe is filled with pain and sadness.”

“It’s not that much better here,” Sam said.

Castiel shook her head, tears glistened in her eyes. “Please don’t tell me anything else.”

“Okay."

Dean was silent. Watching her, the older Winchester tried to grip onto what he had seen and learned. It was getting harder to separate his Castiel from the one he was looking at, their mannerisms the same, the same sad look in their eyes.


	7. Chapter 7

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Universe Transitions within chapters are marked with this symbol: -------^^-------

Castiel heard the fluttering of wings behind him. Turning, he found Inias standing there, a book in his hands. “Inias,” Castiel greeted uncertainly, wondering what the angel wanted.

“Castiel,” Inias said, looking at the other angel before down at the book. Then Inias cleared his throat, gripping the book in his hands a moment.

“What is that?” Castiel asked, nodding toward the book.

“I checked Heaven’s libraries…I used to be a guardian for them before I joined the garrison. I remembered seeing this book. There’s…there’s some information regarding parallel universes here. I didn’t read much of it, but…it may help you.” Inias held out the book to Castiel.

Castiel looked at Inias and slowly took hold of the book. “Thank you,” he said.

Inias looked slightly uncomfortable but nodded. “Just…leave it with one of the guardians of Heaven’s portal when you’re done with it.”

“Inias,” Castiel said, gripping his brother’s shoulder and looking him in the eyes. “Thank you.”

Inias nodded, eyes shining. “I hope it’s helpful,” he replied before stepping away from Castiel and leaving.

Castiel sat down at the table once more. The sick feeling that came from the tear somehow motivated him. He poured over the contents of the book carefully, reading the ancient Enochian text as if it was written by God Himself.

\-------^^-------

“He’s been sitting there for two hours now,” Charlie said softly, looking at Dean from across the room.

“Yea,” Sam replied, glancing at his brother before struggling to work the controller. It had been so long since he had played a videogame he had forgotten nearly everything. Charlie, only half paying attention, was solidly kicking his ass. The controller buzzed in his hands as Charlie’s character landed another combo on his. 

“Seriously Sam,” Charlie said. “He’s been staring into space since Cass left.”

“He’s fine,” Sam told her before grinning as his character landed a combo on Charlie’s. Charlie landed another quick series of jabs on him and his character fell to the ground. _**THE QUEEN WINS**_ bled across the screen.

“Alright,” Garth said, settling the soda on the table between the couch and TVs as he sat down heavily beside Sam. “My turn.”

Sam sighed and handed the controller to the younger male.

“It almost wasn’t fun anymore,” Charlie teased, grinning at Sam.

Sam smirked, shaking his head as he stood up, heading for the fridge. He glanced into the next room. Ellen and William were searching their next job, scouring the internet and news for anything out of the ordinary. Castiel had left with little explanation a few minutes after their history lesson. Sam was worried about Dean but he knew when his brother got in one of these moods there was only one thing he could do.

“Take it,” Sam ordered gently, handing his brother the chilled beer.

Dean blinked, eyes focusing as he looked at Sam. “Yea,” Dean said absentmindedly. “Thanks.” He took the bottle and fiddled with the top.

Sam looked at his brother, concerned. “I took the top off already,” Sam informed.

Dean blinked, looking confused at the bottle and then up at Sam. “Yea. Thanks Sammy.”

“Dean – ”

“Angel tablet,” Dean muttered, before taking a swig from the bottle.

“What?”

Dean was silent, lost in thought again. Sam looked at him, concerned. Dean went through the motions of drinking the beer, unconscious to it. Sam shook his head with sigh before returning to the couch and watching Garth and Charlie play. He knew when his older brother was ready, he’d talk. Until then, maybe he’d keep an eye on Charlie to see just what the hell he was doing wrong with his controller.

\-------^^-------

Castiel smelled sulfur before turning. “Seems I didn’t need your help after all,” he said with a smirk. Crowley looked at the angel sourly before looking at the book Castiel had on the table.

“So that’s where it went,” the demon said. He looked up at Castiel. “Your lot stole that.”

“Sure,” Castiel replied, squinting at the demon sarcastically. He held the book tightly, a cautious .

“Oh yes, about two centuries ago,” Crowley said with a large smirk. “Seems your lot had rather sticky fingers in those days.”

“It doesn’t matter,” Castiel snapped, not wanting to speak of it anymore. “I have it now. And _without_ your help.”

Crowley sighed before snapping his fingers. The contract appeared in his hand before bursting to flame. “Too bad,” muttered Crowley. “Would have enjoyed having that being for night or two.”

Castiel made a face before the demon left. The angel turned back to the book, reading intensely.


	8. Chapter 8

Castiel returned with a sour look on her face. With the sound of her wings, Dean looked up for the first time in hours.

“Cass,” he said, springing out of his seat and moving toward the angel.

Wary but worried, Castiel took a step away from Dean, her face knitting into concern. “Are you okay?” she asked.

Sam looked up from the battle between Garth and Charlie (he had given up trying and was simply watching the two play) and saw the look in Dean’s face. He stood and moved toward the two, hearing the last of Dean’s sentence.

“…of a Chuck Shurley?” Dean asked.

Castiel shook her head.

“Okay, how about Kevin Tran?”

Castiel blinked. “There is a Tran as a prophet,” she said. “But it’s Linda Tran.”

Dean did a familiar move everyone knew as ‘Well, okay then.’ “Linda Tran. Great. She’s still alive right?”

Castiel searched a moment. “Yes.”

“Okay, great,” Dean said. “So, all we need to do is find the Angel Tablet and get her to read it for us.”

“Yea,” Sam interjected, “Sure. Because we have such a long history with them here. Hell Linda probably doesn’t even know us here.”

“Come on Sam,” Dean said. “We’ve got something here!”

“There’s little chance there is something on the Angel Tablet regarding parallel universes,” Castiel said.

“She’s right, Dean. It’s the Angel Tablet, not a ‘Hitchhiker’s Guide to Parallel Universe Jumping.’”

“Okay, well, maybe you can take to Heaven,” Dean said, looking at Castiel. “It’s a big ticket item. Bring it to Heaven, maybe they’ll let you back in.”

“I’m not unearthing God’s Word just to get back into Heaven.”

“Why not?”

“Because that…that would be wrong. Tablets are powerful. In the wrong hands, terrible things can happen.”

“Only if they can read it,” Dean insisted. “Can angels read the writing here?”

“No,” Castiel replied. “But the power of the Tablet doesn’t require it to be read.”

“That’s right Dean,” Sam said. “Our Cass," here he made a face of apology to the Castiel in front of him before continuing, "Said Metatron was using the Tablet to power up. If it made a scribe practically God, imagine what an archangel could do with it.”

“I don’t think Gabriel would use it,” Castiel said. “But that doesn’t mean we should just bring it to him.”

“Come on Cass,” Dean said. “I’m beggin’ you here.”

“What makes you think it’ll even be in the same place here?”

“She’s right,” Sam agreed. “The odds of the angel tablet being in the same place here as in our universe is crazy low.”

“Come on guys,” Dean said, voice rising with an edge of insanity to it. “We can do this.”

“Dean, chill,” Sam said.

“Don’t tell me that!” Dean shouted. “Look where we are! Look at Cass! Look at this; this is all wrong! I’m trying to get us out of here, trying to fix things, and all you guys are doing is shutting me down!”

Castiel shifted. “What’s wrong with me?”

Dean’s mouth went from a perfect “O” to a straight line in a second. “Nuthin’,” Dean said before swallowing.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I figured I should at least put up this chapter. It's the last full one I have written, but I am working on it. I typically flit around when writing chapters, so while I have the whole story mapped out, I still need to fill out the chapters a bit more. Hang in there!


End file.
